How to generate machine code with llvm

Question

I'm currently working on a compiler project using llvm. I have followed various tutorials to the point where I have a parser to create a syntax tree and then the tree is converted into an llvm Module using the provided IRBuilder.

My goal is to create an executable, and I am confused as what to do next. All the tutorials I've found just create the llvm module and print out the assembly using Module.dump(). Additionally, the only documentation I can find is for llvm developers, and not end users of the project.

If I want to generate machine code, what are the next steps? The llvm-mc project looks like it may do what I want, but I can't find any sort of documentation on it.

Perhaps I'm expecting llvm to do something that it doesn't. My expectation is that I can build a Module, then there would be an API that I can call with the Module and a target triple and an object file will be produced. I have found documentation and examples on producing a JIT, and I am not interested in that. I am looking for how to produce compiled binaries.

I am working on OS X, if that has any impact.

Answer 1

Use llc -filetype=obj to emit a linkable object file from your IR. You can look at the code of llc to see the LLVM API calls it makes to emit such code. At least for Mac OS X and Linux, the objects emitted in such a manner should be pretty good (i.e. this is not a "alpha quality" option by now).

LLVM does not contain a linker (yet!), however. So to actually link this object file into some executable or shared library, you will need to use the system linker. Note that even if you have an executable consisting of a single object file, the latter has to be linked anyway. Developers in the LLVM community are working on a real linker for LLVM, called lld. You can visit its page or search the mailing list archives to follow its progress.